Student Z-Course FAQ
What are zero-cost course materials?
What is the Z-Course Designation?
If zero-cost course materials are free, why do some z-courses have a fee?
Who should I contact if I have questions?
How can I get involved in advocacy for lower course material costs?
What is a z-course?
A z-course is a course that uses zero-cost course materials instead of traditionally published textbooks or commercial homework systems.
What are zero-cost course materials?
“Zero-cost course materials” is a broad term that covers any course materials that are free for students to use, such as e-books or articles available through the FHSU Forsyth Library, educational websites, and open educational resources (OERs).
What is the Z-Course Designation?
The Z-Course Designation is a tag that identifies courses that qualify as z-courses in the Workday course registration system. Students taking z-courses pay a $12 cost-share in lieu of textbook costs, half of which goes to the department and half of which goes to FHSU’s Open Education program for grants, faculty development, and related costs (see below for more details). The department can choose to waive the cost-share.
If zero-cost course materials are free, why do some z-courses have a fee?
The purpose of the z-course cost-share fee is to support the z-course program, not to pay for access to the course materials. The goal of the program is actually to save students money on course materials—$12 is significantly less than the cost of a typical textbook. Some departments have also chosen to waive the cost-share fee.
$6 goes to the department to incentivize them to offer more z-courses and help them keep zero-cost course materials developed by faculty up to date. $6 goes to the library to support FHSU’s Open Education program by funding the creation of more z-courses and providing professional development to teach faculty how to transition to zero-cost course materials. You can see zero-cost textbooks authored by faculty funded by the z-course program in our Pressbooks FHSU Digital Press catalog.
How do I find Z-Courses?
- In Workday, search “Find Course Sections” in the top search bar.
- Under Start Date within, select the desired semester. Then select the desired academic level and click OK.
- Scroll down to Course Tags section heading in the left sidebar. If the “OER::Z-course” or “OER::Z-course (fee waived)” tags are not displayed, use the search box to type “z-course” and select one or both z-course filters to have your course results list display only those classes that will be using zero-cost course materials.
Who should I contact if I have questions?
If you have questions about paying the z-course cost-share fee, please contact Student Fiscal Services. If you have questions about the Z-Course Program, please contact Claire Nickerson at the FHSU Forsyth Library.
How can I get involved in advocacy for lower course material costs?
Reach out to the FHSU Open Educational Resource Committee to get involved at FHSU, or reach out to the Kansas Board of Regents’ Student Advisory Committee to get involved at the state level. There are several great toolkits out there to support student advocacy, too: OER Student Advocate Toolkit, BC Campus OER Student Toolkit!